Abstract
This article presents the results of a comprehensive field-based sociolinguistic study of the
Plautdietsch
language, conducted in 2021 and 2024 in the villages of Neudachino (Novosibirsk Region) and Apollonovka (Omsk Region), areas of compact settlement of Siberian German Mennonites. The empirical base includes audio recordings of spontaneous speech, semi-structured interviews, participant observation, linguistic documentation, sociolinguistic surveys, and field diaries. Using sociolinguistic, contact-linguistic, and ethnolinguistic approaches, the study reconstructs the current linguistic situation and identifies the key factors shaping the vitality, functional distribution, and intergenerational transmission of
Plautdietsch
in these communities.The historical development of
Plautdietsch
as a “Dutchified” Low German dialect in the Danzig (Gdańsk) region, as well as its subsequent transformation through migration into the Russian Empire and the USSR, is outlined. A comparative analysis reveals pronounced differences between the two localities. In Apollonovka,
Plautdietsch
functions as a language of everyday communication, intra-community interaction, and stable intergenerational transmission. In Neudachino, processes of functional narrowing are observed, characterized by the dominance of Russian, age-stratified language competence, and the restriction of
Plautdietsch
to limited communicative domains. The analysis identifies persistent lexical features reflecting Dutch and German substrate influences in the core vocabulary, alongside systematic Russian adstratal influence at the lexical, syntactic, and discursive levels. The scientific novelty of the study lies in the comparative analysis of two local sociolinguistic models and in the empirical identification of community structures, religious practices, and internal communicative norms as key mechanisms sustaining language vitality. The study concludes that
Plautdietsch
, despite the absence of a written tradition and increasing pressure from contact languages, remains a central marker of Mennonite ethnocultural identity. Its future preservation is directly linked to the resilience of community institutions, stable intergenerational transmission, and a growing interest among younger generations.